A Brief Account of the Hetherington and Broughton Families

Compiled by Charlie Tillery

Sam Hetherington was born near Monroeville, Alabama, January 3, 1875. He came to Texas with his family in 1885 when ten years of age. He attended school at Reagan, Texas, and worked on the farm with his brothers and played games and went hunting and fishing with them and with other boys of the community. He became very skillful in all the farm operations picking cotton, plowing, hoeing, butchering hogs, fence building, chopping wood, and many other things. He developed into a big man, strong and energetic, and was able to do more work than most men are capable of doing. All his life he liked to hunt and fish, and he was outstanding in both pursuits.

About 1900 he married Rosa E. Ritta, a young lady who lived in the community. She was born August 17, 1880. For several years they lived in a small boxed house just west of the Hetherington residence and on the Hetherington farm. Then for several years they rented land from John C. Hetherington on a third and fourth basis, and lived in a house south of his brother’s residence. About 1909 or 1910 they bought from W. Z. Burke a farm on the west side of Fish Creek, and moved into the house close to the Covington Cemetery. Here the family worked hard, lived frugally, paid for the farm, and rebuilt the house.

Aunt Rosa was a small, patient, hard working, motherly type of woman, who lived for her husband and her family. As a young girl, she must have been tiny and cute and pretty. Most of her children took after her in build, none of them when mature approaching the size and stature of their father. She contracted tuberculosis in 1915, and died August 15, 1915, lacking two days of being thirty-five years of age. She is buried in the Covington Cemetery.

To Sam and Rosa Hetherington were born the following eight children:

Lucy Hetherington was born September 17, 1901. She married Charlie Alston December 31, 1922. They live at 1304 4th Ave., South, Texas City, Texas. He is a pumper and repairs water meters. They have no children.

Annie Mae Hetherington was born October 17, 1903. She married Albert Brown December 30, 1922. They live at Midland, Texas, where he is employed as a maintenance man. Their children are Ruby Lee Brown, who was born September 20, 1923; Dalton Brown, born February 4, 1926; and Illa Brown born January 8, 1928.

Ruby Lee Brown married Marvin Radford, and they have two children: Nancy, born November 16, 1947; and Marvin Lee, born September 5, 1950.

Illa Brown married Dan Spradling, and they have one child, Danny, born April12, 1949.

Benjamin Franklin Hetherington was born January 17, 1905. He married Thelma Laird September 26, 1931. They have no children. He works for the Cameron Lumber Company at Waco, Texas.

Johnny Alex Hetherington was born November 21, 1907. He married Alice Stafford, and their children are: Edna Mae (Hetherington) Pierce; Johnny Alex Hetherington, Jr.; and Dorothy Hetherington. Johnny is a chief operator at Mon Santo Chemical Plant at Texas City Texas, and his address is 1217 6th Avenue, South, Texas City, Texas.

Effie Irene Hetherington was born February 10, 1909. She married Dewey Hopkins Suitt September 9, 1928, in Jacksonville, Texas. They manage a Theatre at Silsbee, Texas, and have three children: Charles Dewey Suitt, born December 2, 1929, at Nacogdoches, Texas; Barbara Anne Suitt, born October 6, 1931, at Nacogdoches; and Franklin Hughs Suitt, born May 24, 1939, at Silsbee, Texas.

Charles Dewey married Alma Faye Montgomery August 20, 1949, at Beaumont, Texas, and they have a daughter, Sandra Eileen, born February 13, 1952.

Barbara Anne married Darrell D. Shine November 24, 1948, at Silsbee, Texas, and they have a daughter, Betty Lynn, born January 8, 1951.

Bessie Lee Hetherington was born January 25, 1911. She lives at Austin, Texas.

Lillie Hetherington was born September 20, 1913. She married Grady Alston April 5, 1939. He is a water superintendent, and they live at 1304 4th Avenue South, Texas City, Texas.  They have three children, all born at Marlin, Texas: Dianne, born February 10, 1941; Dennis, born August 28, 1943; and Jean, born June 29, 1945.

William Hetherington was born May 15, 1915, just three months before his mother’s death. He lives at 1304 4th Avenue South, Texas City, Texas, and is employed as a dock man for the Republic Oil Refining Company. He served four years in the Army during World War II, in the 865th Antiaircraft, Battery M. He is unmarried.

For one and one-half years after the death of Rosa Hetherington, Sam Hetherington managed somehow to keep his family together and work his farm. The oldest daughter was fourteen, the next daughter was twelve, and the other children were almost too young to do anything, and of course three or four of them were just babies. There was a housekeeper who stayed for a while, but most of the cooking and laundry and housekeeping were done by the father and older children. To manage the family and work the farm was a back-breaking, never-ending task, and a man with less energy and courage would have given up. But I believe there was never any consideration given to any plan other than to keep the family unit together.

The family got a “break” before too long a time had elapsed. Sam met and married Mamie Carter February 15, 1917, and she came to the Sam Hetherington farm and took over the management of the family. Her parents were Andrew Jackson and Amanda (Bradley) Carter, and she was born April 22, 1892. She had also been married previously and had one child, a boy perhaps five or six years old.

To Sam and Mamie Hetherington were born three children one of whom died as an infant:

Margaret Leona Hetherington was born June 27, 1920. She married Rex Kveton March 16, 1946, in Marlin, Texas. He is the purchasing agent for the Texas Marine Hardware Company, and their address is 920 Oak Street, Houston 18, Texas.

Margaret Leona has two children: Janice Clair Miles, born January 2, 1941, and Judith Ann Miles, born November 14, 1945.

Mary Hetherington was born June 10, 1924. She is a registered nurse, and is employed by Jeff Davis Hospital, Houston, Texas.

It has not been my privilege to have been closely associated with the Sam Hetherington family for some thirty-five years. It seems to me very evident that Aunt Mamie took over the duties of wife and mother of a large family of children and performed these duties willingly and with dignity and understanding. She is an expert cook and house-keeper, a good neighbor, and a most helpful sort of person to have around. No doubt the Hetherington children would have preferred to have kept their own mother, but they were lucky to have such a nice second mother to fend for them.

Uncle Sam was a hearty eater and a social sort of man. His thoughts and speech and habits were clean and above reproach. He liked to go to town and visit with relatives and neighbors and friends of long standing. He bore afflictions with courage and without complaint. He was honest and truthful and considerate, and always willing to be of service. He was without pretense, and seemingly satisfied with what he had.

In the late 1920’s he and his family built a house at Reagan on a small tract of land, large enough for a garden and a pasture for the milked cows. They moved into this house, but continued to work the farm for many years. Finally Uncle Sam’s sight failed him and he quit making a crop. However, he continued to enjoy fair health and was strong and vigorous for a man of his age. He suffered a stroke late in November of 1951, and died December 13, 1951. He is buried in the Covington Cemetery.

At the time of his death, he had ten living children, fourteen grandchildren, and five great grandchildren.